Ballad of Pain
by Balviet123
Summary: When a bird wanders into the realm of a tiger, the snow may not be the only thing that clips its wings.


Snowflakes were everywhere; the sun high and creating dancing ghosts of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Smoke wavered in the distance, and the sky the perfect shade of blue and grey, with precisely enough clouds in that backdrop. Indeed, it was the ideal scene for a Christmas card that said cheery phrases like "On this dear night, your wishes all came true."

However, it was ruptured by background details that only an educated mind would understand. And it was because of these little facts that made the night so lethal.

For one, there was a tiger on the prowl, tracking down and stalking a rare, exotic bird. A lovely creature, the bird had a long tail that made many uneducated onlookers believe he was a female avian. But this tiger knew precisely what it was stalking, including its sex.

The other fact that made the night altogether less appealing was that the bird had gotten a damaged wing, and was earthbound in the freezing territory of the tiger. What puzzled him was that, merely minutes before; it had been a blazing desert, like the southern part of the territory usually was. How did the climate to one of heat and sand to another of a desert of snow and ice? The tiger had warned him of unpredictable, rapid and severe weather changes, but this was beyond anything the avian had ever experienced before. And despite the eyes' optic illusions, the avian himself was far olden than the tiger. However, whereas the tiger was just now hitting its prime and pinnacle of strength, the bird was very weak; significantly weaker than the other.

Following the aspect of wandering about for approximately half an hour without proper garb, the graceful creature fell, wrapping brightly colored wings about its body to retain as much heat as possible. If he were to die here and become a meal for the tiger, at least he could die with pride and beauty about him.

Footsteps crunched through the snow ice, nearly reaching to the traumatized soil. _The tiger?_ The avian thought and nodded to himself. Only the tiger would dare to trek the pitiless weather here. Only the tiger would be able to, with its invulnerability to virtually everything.

"Are…are you alive?" That _was _certainly the tiger's voice, but was the bird truly so disguised by snow and the cold to be identified? It seemed as so, for the tiger made no move to attack its prey. In fact, the tiger lifted the bird and shielded it from the elements in a nearly loving embrace, if the tiger possessed a real heart.

x0x

The crackling of a warm fire brought the captive back to its senses. The place where he lay…it was somewhere between a rock and a fairly comfortable mattress. Shifting, he saw it was indeed a cushion, with a pile of blankets and pillows supported him as well. Whatever had happened to giving a guest a bedroom of their own? Or were captives no longer seen as guests, but precisely what they were? Was the once-free bird now sealed in the cage of the tiger's den?

A yawn escaped the body, followed by a shiver that left him stunned and even a bit intimidated. Looking at himself, he noted his light garments had been replaced by ones of lesser color, but that proved to be far better insulated. All the better to stay comfortable in before his deprivation of life.

A dizzy, fuzzy brain proved to be of neither help nor consequence to the earthbound one. It was like being drunk, with adrenaline pumping and yet his him at a dull peace of mind. At this point, perhaps silence would be the best course of action. After all, the tiger liked the thrill of a chase, not the easy way of devouring a sleeping, fatigued prey. At least, _this _tiger acted in such a manner.

"Where are you, aru?" Obviously, the confused brain did not agree with the thought that had just passed through it. "Yiwan, if you are stalking me from a ways away, you will be sorry aru!" That remembrance of the first Opium War was forever carved into the paradise bird's speech. It was a hindrance; a curse. He had never wanted a speech issue such as repeating a memoriam at the finale of every sentence spoken. Just as he had never asked to be captured by the feral beast of this snowy world. "Answer me, aru!" There it was again!

A whisper that sounded like thousands of voices combined whistled past him, sending another chill to perform its duty. A few minutes passed, and heavy footsteps that matched the ones made in the wonderland outside reverberated throughout the room.

There the tiger stood, in the doorway. His eyes; the eyes of a devil child gleamed, peeking out behind that ashen mane. Tall and confident as always, a sickening smile came forth. The horror on feet, Ivan Braginski, the king of Eastern Europe and now Asia. His size alone was enough to scare a foe into submission, and his rage that could barrel forth polished up the statue of intimidation and the aura of malice and lack of mercy. They said that those who went under his rule never obtained true freedom again. That future freedom was even under tight surveillance. That all would belong to him someday.

"Ah, Jao!" His own heavy accent that made him sound like he were swallowing his own words butchered the name. "You are finally awake. I have been waiting for-" He looked at a clock behind the bounds of the room. "—now, an hour and a half. It would have been quicker to kill you and wait a third of that time for you to return. Though then you would have been in pain when you awoke and filed me for rape, no?" Ivan's little monologue sounded five times that length to the caged bird. _"I sense your fear."_ He seemed to say, those demon eyes casting their faze into the soul of the other.

"Then why didn't you?" That speech enigma, always recurring, was demoted to a whisper. "If it would be so much easier and quicker. You always were an impatient one, Yiwan." It felt like they were dancing about the room, the entity of air and freedom flying all about the room, the earthbound embodiment of power chasing it down. It was a ballad of danger; a slow dance of probable injury or death. But the bird knew that so long as he kept flying and flitting about, the tiger would never catch him.

"Because if I killed you, I would destroy a thing of grace and beauty." The tiger approached, eyes shining in a new, lighter contrast of brightness. Beneath that mess of ash and oddly colored irises, there was a man. Not a feral tiger or bloodthirsty man, but a man. A man who wandered his territory, searching for warmth in the cold. His fur and extra fat were no match for the eternal cold of his land. "Did you want to be covered in blood when you awoke?"

Much as this warmed his heart, Yao refused to be swayed. "I would have been better to have known what you did to me rather than lying here and being clueless. You appeared very quickly, as though you had been watching me the whole time." That man was insanely creepy and borderline stalker, and being in the same area as that made Yao's olive skin crawl uncomfortably.

An awkward silence erupted between the two as the conversation abruptly halted. There had been no warning, nor had there been anything to evoke such a silence.

"I could always kill you now, but I figured you would desire life over death." He shrugged, stepping closer. It was such a strange way to terminate an untimely silence, but it was the first thing the tiger could bring forth through the filter that had been placed between his brain and tongue. "Would you prefer to be killed now?"

As the threat of death actually arose, Yao shook, wrapping his arms around himself in a vain attempt to keep himself warm and sheltered. "No, Yiwan." How could he express that fear? An older man, one who had seen the tiger grow from a harmless kitten into his beast; how could he feel fear towards the ashen one? Before, he had been the one to peck at a young tiger's pale, soft fur, and now the roles had been reversed. "Please aru."

"But…" Innocence coated the obvious growl that the tiger released from the depths of its guarded neck. "You said you'd have rather died, Jao. Are you backing down on your word? Is all that pride and honor gone after so many years?" The words came in a mocking tone, as a tease to Yao. Years before, the avian would have ripped the tiger to ribbons. But now, the tiger was at the top of the food chain, with the bird below him. Funny how fate and karma worked as one.

"Yiwan…" Amber eyes stared into the ones of the predator, hunter and quarry becoming one on a mental level for a split second. "Yiwan, you're not like this, aru. Please…don't kill me, aru. You can change the hunting game. I came here looking for you."

The tiger sat on his haunches, tilting his head to the side. "Jao…" The name was released as a whisper in the winds. "You came to see me? Why?" Discomfort settled upon the predator, and it was obvious even to the prey that was seconds from a stroke. "Did you need something? Money? Food?"

He shook his head, swaying as well. "No, Yiwan." Flitting closer, Yao managed a small smile. "I came to visit. Because we're nearly neighbors, and we haven't spoken in years." There was regret in his voice for coming so close and speaking in such a courageous manner. Speaking in such a disrespectful way before the man who controlled your destiny most likely was not the wisest thing the amber-eyes man had ever done, but what had happened had happened, and there were no retries in life.

"I would dare to question why you suddenly feel the need to come to _me _and say we haven't spoken in years!" The man was gone; the beast replacing the husk of the physical appearance. "You always ignore me, and reject me whenever we are near one another." An absolutely _twisted _smile speared on the face of the taller. "And because you have rejected me, you will pay."

"P-pay?" Had that been a _stutter?_ Yao had never done such a thing, especially not before the man who devoured fear and grow ever more powerful upon seeing the trembling and hearing the stuttering of other nations. Recalling the other's reputation, the Asian's eyes widened. "Yiwan, no. No…"

"Oh yes." The tone was so happy and eager, and Yao dared to glance down and notice a suspiciously large disruption in the tiger's lower garments. He could tell where this was going, and he softly groaned. There was no way this was happening. Not to him. "Come with me." Without so much as a hesitation, Ivan lifted Yao and clung to him, bringing the bird to his room.

First, to clip the wings, he took off his scarf, securely tying Yao to the bedpost and sliding off the tunic Yao was wearing, forcing it down over his hips rather than over his head. Yao was sitting upright, completely in the nude, with a fully clothed Ivan before him.

"Yiwan, you don't have to do this, aru!" He struggled half-heartedly, some part of him longing to know what the man had learned on his own. Ways to prod and turn his prey into willing pawns. Many nations had fallen to his might, with Yao maybe joining the crowd.

Judging that his quarry was hooked, the attacker shrugged and dug about his room, uncovering two jars of aphrodisiac, one with a strong effect on people and another dear Kiku had invented that relaxed muscles and made the dominant go over the edge quicker. Along with these weapons, he held up two large vibrators the rivaled the size of his own member.

Untying his caged bird, Ivan made his work quick and retied the more frail man so he was facing away from the tiger, resting on his calves in a kneeling position. "Ah, Jao. This will be good payment."

Tilting his head and thinking perhaps his impatience would make this that much less enjoyable, he forced Yao's legs to spread and dug for a metal cockring, which he slipped on the captive's member. He then forced the slightly smaller vibrator into the bound's entrance, pushing it in until it was fully sheathed.

"You know, Jao." A humored voice animated the scene. "Have you eaten lately?"

Biting his lip, Yao nodded. "Why?"

Wiggling the vibrator, Ivan moaned at the Asian's response. "Because anal sex speeds up the release of fecal matter and releases gases in your intestines."

Yao froze, but in confusion. Why would that matter? "So?" He dared to ask, looking at the ashen tiger that was currently dunking his fingers into the powerful, red-colored gel known as aphrodisiac. He rubbed a generous layer on Yao's member and along the very insides of that beautiful entrance.

Pleased with his work, Ivan took a good long stare at that olive skin, waiting to be pounded into. "No reason. It's just fascinating." He took out the long, thick vibrator and forced it inside the mouth of the Asian bird. Using a length of his scarf, he tied it in such a way so that the vibrator doubled as a gag.

The size of the foreign object forced Yao's throat to unclench to prevent choking. Saliva ran out the corners of the mouth, but the aphrodisiac sent a burning wave through the body, forcing him to suck at that rubber toy.

"Yao, you'll enjoy this." Ivan reassured his future toy, fingering the tube of Kiku's aphrodisiac. "Little Kiku gave this in mass supply to me." He took a good amount in his hand, coating the anal walls of the Asian with glee. "You'll feel incredible."

Yao felt the muscles begin to relax, him raising his hips and rocking them in hopes of getting something in his entrance. It felt like his ass was full of liquid, and the moving helped none. If he could speak, he would be begging for something, _anything _to be in there. Yet, the gag prevented such a thing. Rather, moans water-falled from the throat, face flushed and eyes shut.

Seeing the walls spread as that graceful man spread his legs further, Ivan smiled. "What a shame. I'm fully clothed. Maybe in a while, I'll be naked and horny and ready for this."

_What? He would be stuck like this?_ Yao furiously shook his head, moaning and sucking harder on that cheap replacement for a cock. Hips raised, Yao needed this. He _needed _it, more than he had needed anything before.

Petting the soft hair of the Chinese man, Ivan smiled. So now even Yao was his? Nodding, he made quick work of undressing and untying Yao. On the bed, there would be too much comfort. No, Yao needed to be taught that he was now a whore, no, less than that. A toy. Yao had outlived his chances to have pleasure. Now he would be a pet; lower than all else.

The makeshift gag remained, Yao left to suck and nibble it as he was brought to his hands and knees before the larger man. Before the beast.

"Ah, Jao." A breathy sigh before the moans and Ivan probed Yao's entrance, the Asian sucking in that member and tightening around it. His ass needed more, as did he. Everything was so good and right now, the position set and in place.

The heat, the eagerness…it all pushed Ivan over the edge, releasing more of the beast. A hand was brought to the plump flesh of Yao's backside, a hard, pleasurable smack sounding as red appeared on the right orb of flesh.

More moans and gasps ensued as Yao leaned on the ground, hips being raised as his dignity was being torn down. That large, thick, throbbing organ inside of him…it felt mediocre. He needed more. He needed so much more.

Noticing this, Ivan took the equally long vibrator and thrust it beside his own member, watching in awe as that hungry entrance swallowed it up. To be degraded so fast…Ivan was utterly enthralled and captivated.

That rubber thing was no longer enough. Yao needed to be filled; to feel as though he would be torn apart if anything more were forced in. He was drinking his own saliva, mindlessly bobbing his head and continuing to suck it further down his throat.

Releasing and spilling his cum into that stretched, needy ass, Ivan grunted and named Yao's overbearing neediness. "Jao, you want my cock in your mouth? You want more until you can be stretched no more? To feel full and needed?"

Quickly, the man nodded. _Of course _he needed those things! Why would someone bother to _ask?_ He moaned as he felt his dominator pull out, but not before he moved and switched places with the rubber thing in Yao's mouth, giving his hardening cock a warm, wet place to lie.

Rapid sucks erupted from Yao, the man lifting his head and wrapping his arms around Ivan's waist and burying the organ in his throat. It felt so _good, _to feel the pulsing vein there on the underside; the growing erection filling his mouth. Moans louder than before came forth, the amber eyes still closed and movements sporadic.

"Eager little whore." Ivan's trademark phrase; one he used on all newcomers under his rule, escaped the breathy gasps. Perhaps living so long had taught Yao a few things. "That's right. This is your payment. Finish good, and I'll shove something else up your ass so you can keep me in your mouth.

Unable to think straight, Yao jolted and began stroking and massaging the hunter's balls, knowing it would give him that sticky, hot delicious substance faster. It felt so _good_, and Yao lost all sense of where he was and what he was doing. Perhaps that was why he didn't notice the scarf that was tied around his neck and Ivan's hips, forcing the two to stay in that position.

For nearly two hours that position was kept, save for when Ivan lost all feeling in his legs and decided he needed to sit on the bed while Yao continued to force more and more of Ivan's seed into the Asian's mouth. However, after two long hours, Ivan had nothing more for his companion.

Untying the scarf, Ivan pulled the battered, humiliated man off. "We are done. Your debt is repaid. Go."

Shaking his head, Yao remained there. "No, Yiwan. I still want you to fill me and go deeper than ever before. Deeper than you went all those times when you ruled over me and the rest with an iron grip. There were people to stop us then. Not now. Please, Yiwan. Don't reject me, aru."

Feeling—was it guilt?—Ivan nodded. "…Alright. But I still dominate you, as always. And you are here as a toy. Nothing more." Of course, the meaning was clear. But how could Yao expect a proud beast like a tiger to show love or mercy for a bird; its prey? Such a thing was unheard of by any standard.

"Of course, aru." Slowly, Yao's mind was returning, him wincing slightly at what he had just been doing for the past couple of hours. This trip had turned into one of surprise and…could you slightly call it excitement? Perhaps not in the most professional of terms, but that exercise _had _been thrilling to both people. "Yiwan, you don't have to act like a heartless monster. I came here to see you, and we just did _that._" His cheeks flushed a bit at the memory. "You know I could have escaped. I could have rebelled. But I didn't. And for a good reason, aru." Taking a breath, Yao smiled. "Yiwan, I care about you. We were both under the hammer and sickle, and I understand why you're trying so hard, aru. But you don't need to be like this anymore. You can be strong and decent, aru."

"…Teach me." Ivan said simple, picking up the battered man and lying him down on the bed. "

"Teach you aru?" Yao tilted his head, a tad confused at those two words that stood alone in that otherwise silent room. "What do you need to be taught, aru?"

Pulling out the vibrator, Ivan nodded and slowly moved in, significantly gentler than before. "Teach me to be strong and decent, Jao."

The avian nodded, smiling a bit. His smile was cut off by the pain and discomfort of the sudden change in space occupied in his entrance, head spinning and feeling rather sickened by his past actions. What sort of role model was he now? "After this, aru. We need to have normal sex now, aru."

Nodding, the ashen tiger smiled and kissed the one below him, pulling off the metal cockring that had so long ago been forgotten, knowing how dangerous it was to have on for too lengthy a time. "You are patient with me. More patient than you should be. Slowly, he pumped the other's needy member, feeling no clenching or buildup to be released. He was fine and through, but Yao had yet to be properly pleasured.

After a while, far longer than presumed, Yao released on Ivan's hand, subconsciously and slightly wincing at the idea of a possible punishment. His body was worn out; he didn't need any more problems or stress to be put upon it by the larger, stronger creature of the Eastern world.

Smiling a strangely genuine smile, Ivan wiped the cum off his hand and onto the fabric that made up his own bedding, surprising both.

"Yiwan?" Perhaps he shouldn't ask, but he had to. "Why did you do that, aru?"

A shrug. "Why not? I needed to rid of it." He pulled out of Yao, lying beside him and covering them both with a warm, fresh blanket. "Now we sleep." It was a demand, and the once-captive bird smiled.

"Yes. Now we sleep."


End file.
